Assalamualaikum wbt. Hi!
Dah lama betul tak update blog… tapi 2 tahun?? Tak sangka dah selama tu! Thank you untuk sesiapa yang still visit this blog and always contact encourage untuk still casually write 😂
So, long story short.
In January 2025, my little family traveled to Japan from the 19th to the 24th. It was a super random trip—one day, I was just casually scrolling through the 2025 holiday calendar, and suddenly, I thought of asking Muadz if he wanted to go to Japan (asking as in semi paksa lah cam biasa ahahaha). Funny enough, we didn’t even travel during the long holiday period! 😂 We checked out a few dates that had reasonable ticket and accommodations prices, as well as suited our work schedules. The moment Muadz confirmed his leave, we immediately booked the tickets. Totally unplanned! I had always wanted to visit Japan someday, but it was just a casual conversation for years, and I had other prefectures in mind. But… this turned out to be one of the best decisions ever! A great way to kick off 2025. 💓 Hokkaido is loveeee!
Travelogue : Preparation for our trip to Hokkaido
My travel style is DIY—I love planning my own trips. From Egypt, Paris, Amsterdam, Austria, Italy, Korea, to Thailand, I’ve always done it DIY-ly. I’m mentioning this to emphasize my experience with DIY planning. But… this time, it was different because we traveled with a kid! A toddler, to be exact. And when it comes to that department, I was completely clueless. 😂 How many clothes to pack, diapers, food, nap schedules—so many things to consider. Hence, hopefully, this post can give some ideas to parents who are planning a trip with their little ones too!
Here’s my usual planning sequence:
- Flight tickets
- Accommodation
- Insurance & leave application
- Itinerary (including where to eat)
- Budget (including ground transport)
- Checklist
- Extras (e.g., vaccinations)
Flight.
First of all, this isn’t a sponsored post or anything—just sharing my real experience! Haha.
So, I searched for flight tickets on Trip.com, mainly to compare the most reasonable prices since they list multiple airline options. I also like their website interface because it makes it super easy to check which dates have cheaper fares—there’s a top tab that displays the dates and prices right away. Plus, it’s convenient for searching intercity flights, like our trip:
- KUL > New Chitose (Hokkaido): AirAsia X
- New Chitose > Tokyo: Spring Airlines
- Tokyo > KUL: Batik Air
Our bookings didn’t include checked baggage, in-flight meals, seat selection, or delayed baggage protection. Only Batik Air had in-flight entertainment, but you had to use your own phone/tablet (by scanning a code).
- Ticket + tax for 1 adult: RM 1,978
- Ticket + tax for 1 child: RM 1,939
- Carry-on luggage: All flights included 7kg hand carry/person (make sure to check the allowed dimensions). But since we were traveling in winter, our gear may exceed 7kg, so we added 20kg checked baggage for each flight. Checked baggage (20kg for 3 flights): RM 950
- Delayed baggage protection: RM 22
- In-flight meals: Since the KUL > New Chitose and Tokyo > KUL flights were around 7+ hours, and I knew I’d get hungry 😂, I pre-ordered meals:
- RM 70 for 3 meals
- RM 12 for instant noodles (during the return flight)
- Seat selection: RM 78
- Auto check-in (to avoid forgetting or being late): RM 21
Overall, my experience on all flights was good with no major issues. The seats were comfortable (we’re of average height, so legroom was okay 😂), the flight attendants were friendly, and both takeoff & landing were smooth. Our return flight had a slight delay, but it didn’t significantly affect our arrival time.
This was actually my first time booking with Trip.com, and I’m pretty satisfied with their service. Even though their customer support has a chatbot, you can opt to chat with a real agent if needed. All booking details—including payments, check-in, and flight info—are easy to access directly from the Trip.com app. Definitely a hassle-free experience!
Japan's sky
Accommodation.
I’ve always used Booking.com for accommodations, especially since I have a Genius discount, so I just booked through there. Since we were traveling with a toddler, I preferred comfortable stays—hostels or shared bathrooms weren’t an option. I also always prioritize accommodations near train stations or airports, depending on our itinerary.
Sapporo: We stayed at Hotel Vista Sapporo Nakajima Koen for 3 nights: RM 484.
- The hotel is super close to Nakajima Koen Station and Nakajima Park, which is absolutely beautiful.
- It’s also conveniently near Sapporo Station.
Narita: We stayed at International Garden Hotel Narita for 1 night: RM 217.
- Although it’s not near a train station, the hotel provides a free shuttle service to and from the airport, which made our return journey much easier.
- The hotel has a 7-Eleven inside, perfect for quick snacks.
- I noticed a lot of cabin crew staying here too—always a good sign!
I was super satisfied with both hotels! Cleanliness was top-notch (as expected in Japan, with their disciplined culture), and fresh linens were provided daily, including robes. The bathrooms had bidets, bathtubs, hairdryers, and full toiletries—everything we needed for a comfortable stay.
And honestly… I totally get why people keep wanting to go back to Japan. I miss it already! ðŸ˜ðŸ’•
Insurance.
Dulu I macam tak de kesedaran sangat pasal travel insurance ni (walaupun I baru tahu our recent travel overseas husband I ada ambil tapi I yang taktahu hahaha), but since bekerja, I baru tahu kepentingan travel insurance ni, especially kitorang bila nak apply cuti ke luar negara kena isi cert number insurance dekat form tu. I ambil etiqa tripcare 360 takaful insurance silver plan covered for 3 family members: RM 64.88.
Checklist.
Okay, untuk checklist ni actually dia correlated dengan itineraries jugak tp I skip dulu cerita pasal itineraries (and ground transport) sebab dia ber episod hehehe.
Sebab this time I kena buat checklist untuk 2 babies (husband I pun baby jugak tau, kami masing2 punya baby 😂), untuk mengelakkan tertinggal point2 penting, mula-mula i buat categorization dulu; documents, medications, essentials and amusements, pastu i buat individual punya section. Dekat individual punya section tu i bahagi kepada level of anggota dan brainstorm lah apa yang perlu dekat each level, supaya tak tertinggal minor2 thing macam inner tudung ke brooch ke, bottle detergent and travel brush ke ha gitu
I ada buat few readings lah on winter gear for negative degrees temperature sebab ya lah nervous, kita ni orang iklim tropikal hahah. Ramai yang menekankan kepentingan layering; inner heat tech > casual cloth > winter jacket/bubble. Untuk foot wear; thick socks>winter shoes (untuk tempat yang ada ice/snow, sila lah pakai yang ada spike sebab ice tu bila dia dah mengeras beramai-ramai, dia licin. Dah berapa orang i nampak tergelincir or terjatuh 😥). Testimoni husband i tentang teknik layering ni : menjadi! Sebab sebelum ni waktu kitorang europe punya travel yang dia ingat dia kurang tahan suhu walaupun waktu tu bukan lah negative degrees pun.
Extras: Vaccination.
From our previous travels, I learned that this time, all 3 of us got an extra vaccination (influenza), even though it wasn’t a mandatory requirement to enter Japan. We got it done at Serenity Clinic Serenia City! The doctor was so quick with the injection—Muhammad didn’t even have time to start crying! 😂
Anyway, that’s pretty much it for Part 1 of our 2025 travelogue to Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. This part was mostly about the preparations. If I write too much, I’ll probably lose track of it all hahaha! InshaAllah, I’ll continue with Part 2 soon, covering our itinerary, budget for ground transport, and food. Stay tuned! 😊
Thanks for reading! Hope this will help you planning as well, especially with toddler on board! 💓